M. Rex
M. Rex is a title by Avalon Comics, a subsidiary of Image Comics. It ran for two issues in 1999. The series later served as a basis for Man of Action to create Generator Rex. Authors The story was created by Joe Kelly. Aaron Sowd, Alp Altiner, and Curtis Arnold were responsible for inking, while Duncan Rouleau created covers. Story setting : "The world as you know it is not as you know it. Evolution did not peak with the human being and his opposable thumb and his diet cola-- oh no, friend! The world continues to grow and evolve even as you sit here reading your funny book. Organisms once barely considered "alive" are developing a collective consciousness. A kollektivbewusstsein. If you will. New species are vying for dominance... The world is in flux. : Some, like the enigmatic group known only as Providence would keep that information from you. So as to prevent the lemming-like panic that would surely ensue. They maintain and mitigate all information as regards new species, new civilizations... so the status quo stays... quo. : Others, like yourself, continue on their lives blissfully unaware of what lies beyond the veil of their ken... but cannot escape the waves of change that loom on the horizon. What you don't know can... and soon will hurt you... : We join our story following the lives of three very different folks... One in the know. Who wishes he wasn't... One who doesn't know she's in the know but thinks she knows it all... And one who doesn't know nuthin', including the dark truth that lives within his own heart. The agent. The actress. And the apprentice... Three ships passing in the night? Not likely, partner! These three are on a collision course with destiny... : Join us... would you?" - M. Rex, Issue #1's foreword Characters M. Rex introduced four main protagonists of Generator Rex: Rex, Agent Six, White Knight and Bobo Haha (who in the comic book series is known as "The HaHa"). M. Rex also included unique characters who did not appear in the television series, such as Mia Moore, Simon Babbage, Spilken and a few others. Plot Issue #1: The Actress, the Agent and the Apprentice The story starts in the year 2005 when machines (over years of existence) gain their own personality and notice how fragile and unintelligent humankind was and still is. Eventually, they decide to start a rebellion against their creators. In other times, a pro-ecologic charity party is held on a high-class passenger ship named Sarragasso Sapphire. The main host of the event is a famous celebrity, Mia Moore. As she's wallowing in her popularity, she doesn't notice that she's being targeted by two Providence top assassins: Agent Six and White Knight backed up with their army of monkeys. Agent Six is disappointed that he has to spy on Mia - he had hoped that the higher-ups would have assigned him to the main sponsor of tonight's event, Simon Babbage, instead. After the monkeys make some noise in the canteen, White Knight notices a blender. He quickly destroys it with fury and leaves the scene angered. Meanwhile, Rex, along with his guardian, Spilken, try to break into the ship's most protected areas to steal goods within it. Unfortunately, Rex is unable to focus on the task at hand when Spilken reveals that the job they're about to perform is extraordinary. The payment for it would be equivalently high, making them extremely rich. As Rex forces through the ship's ventilation system, he brings up Spilken's promise to help him to find his long-lost family. Spilken replies evasively by convincing Rex that he should treat him as a family instead. Unfortunately, Spilken gives Rex the wrong directions and the boy ends up right above Six's hideout. Six's monkeys pick up his presence and start a chase. Eventually, Rex gets circled by Six's monkeys; as he begs for help, his nanites activate and make a hole in the floor. Rex falls into Mia Moore's personal quarter - right into the flowers she received from her ex- and current lover. Dumbstruck, Rex asks the shocked Mia for help. She's delighted by his request and really wants to help the poor soul. Before she's able to grasp the sole idea of what she has to do, Rex escapes. Later that night, Mia finally hosts the show and introduces Simon Babbage and his plan for the perfect ecosystem to the crowd. During the performance, to Spilken's irritation, an unknown to Rex power brings him close to the scene. As Simon states something White finds suspicious, the Providence assassin starts an offensive. In reply, Simon activates the Jackpot Robot. It immediately targets Mia and Simon as its first victims. Simon tries to make an escape with Mia, but she spots Rex and tries to keep her promise to help the boy no matter what. Rex, on the other hand, wants to help the celebrity by dragging her along with Spilken. Both Simon and Spilken refuse to the pleas, escaping alone - leaving their wards behind. When Mia and Rex are about to be killed, Agent Six jumps in the fight; however, his pistols are useless against the powerful robot. In desperation, Rex accidentally morphs his hands into enormous golden fists and destroys the bot. Issue #2: Size Matters After successfully escaping from Sarragasso Sapphire to his and Rex's hideout in Nevada, Spilken can't help but blame Rex for their failure. Fearing the Sheik's wrath and possible revelation which might come later from the data he left behind along with Rex, Spilken makes a decision to "vanish" without a trace. As he is about to leave the hideout he meets Rex, who's safe and sound. It appears that he'd escaped from the ship on a weird spider-like flying device created with his nanites. Rex, not suspecting he was about to be abandoned, happily hugs his guardian and explains the mystery behind the build he made of "thin air". Spilken sees amazing new possibilities he can achieve with Rex's unique abilities and powers. Back in 2005, the HaHa interrogates a man with a snake tattoo. The interrogation is ruthless and painful as the man seems to have not enough information about what the monkey is really interested in CODEX MUNDI and EDEN. Back to the present, Six is sent by Providence for another mission in Jersey City. Once again the agent is disappointed by the lack of trust from the higher-ups and is doubting his skills. When his target, mister Donatelli, is unwilling to cooperate, Six threatens him with his katana and the secret technique called poi-kan he's about to perform on him (the person affected with this technique will see his afterlife after death). Scared, the man confesses everything he knows: it was the Sheik who ordered Spilken and Rex to rob Sarragasso Sapphire. Machines all around the world are getting impatient of their slavery to humans and impatiently await the upcoming revolution and reclamation of the long-lost Omicron Nanites. At the same time, Mia Moore is working on a horror movie. During a break, Simon Babbage visits her with a handful of flowers - the woman seems unimpressed and disappointed by the fact that she was left by her lover for death. It takes lots of effort to appease Mia. Spilken takes Rex to Marrakech (in Morocco) to show their boss - Sheik - Rex's abilities. As Rex fools around at the rooftop, Spilken convinces Sheik to take a look at the boy. At first, Sheik is unimpressed by Spilken's story but changes his mind after hearing that Rex creates incredible miracles with his nanites. The boy receives a personal audience; suddenly, Sheik starts to feel unwell. Suddenly an enormous robot surfaces from the sheik's body. Scared, Spilken without hesitation betrays Rex, offering him to the bloodthirsty machine. After learning that Rex is at Marrakech, Mia continues her crusade to help him, dragging her assistant Darcy along. As both women raise a commotion around themselves, they do not notice that Six is also after the boy. Mia quickly finds Sheik's palace and after bribing the guards, she happily enters the throne room just in time to see the horrid scene. When the robot is trying to kill the boy, to obtain the nanites from Rex's body, said machines try to defend their human host. As the robot is about to kill Mia and Rex, Six once again jumps in and helps the pair. The robot decides to use "porcupine flight" and shoots multiple blades. Rex saves Mia with the wall created from his own nanites. While Six is able to take cover by himself, unfortunately, Spilken and Darcy get shot with several blades. Mia quickly approaches her dying assistant but it's known that she cannot be saved. Spilken tries to force Rex to help him, but the boy refuses to do anything, feeling betrayed by his guardian. Rex then forces the ground to lower him and Mia to the sewer level. Six is amazed by Rex's special and unique abilities but is also irritated that the boy had escaped. As he muses about the failure, White Knight finally arrives and scolds the samurai for his incompetence. Trivia * The "M" in the title stands for "Machina." The full title of the series is Machina Rex. * In the series, all the machines (from blenders to computers) communicate with each other through binary code. Throughout the series * Rex's builds are golden. M. Rex, Issue #2 - "Size Matters" * The second issue has an alternative, exclusive cover (limited series of thirty-five hundred copies). The cover depicts Mia Moore with long red hair, goggles, and a light bulb tattoo on her breast. External links * ComicVine profile with issues and characters References Category:Comics Category:M. Rex Category:Real world